Hear my Song!
Concert XVII
Love and Trust
She was so dead. Miku would definitely kill her, or worse. Thinking about how much time the girl spend with Luka, worse was definitely the likely option here. Her mind wasn't fuzzy and she didn't have a sudden loss of memory and she still didn't manage to think of a way to get out of this unscathed.
Waking up because something tickled her nose, Lily saw the world through a silver curtain. Or more specifically, a silver shutter, giving her glimpses of the real world beyond. Seeing the instruments, Lily realized that she was still in the practice room. Right. She had kept practicing with Haku, after having a moment with her alone. Taking way too long and taking a break before going home, she told Haku about herself, both of them sitting on the couch, relaxing, and Haku even told her a few things, like what her favorite food was, what type of clothes and shoes she liked, mostly trivial things but it was a start.
That explained the silver shutter. Putting hair strands out of her face, Lily found herself laying on the couch, Haku in front of her. Due to the limited length of the piece of furniture, she was really close. And her cellphone was vibrating. Pulling it out, carefully, she had eighty-two missed calls, over seventy of them from Miku. That had her wide awake. Rising up, Haku was still peacefully asleep next to her. They were both fully clothed and there had been no alcohol or anything overly romantic. The last thing she remembered was talking about a trip to Kyoto she did once on her own, on a whim, before she briefly closed her eyes. And here she was.
But who would actually believe that after how she acted around Haku? They would definitely not believe her and accuse her of seducing the red eyed woman. She could swear on that. Looking at the sleeping Haku, she had her back turned towards Lily, facing the back of the couch while Lily had been facing the instruments, some of Haku's long silver hair falling over her head.
Getting off the couch, Lily meticulously checked her clothes and Haku's back, from a safe distance, for any evidence of anything having happened. But there was nothing, absolutely nothing. They had merely fallen asleep at the same place.
Calling Luka, who immediately answered with "How bad?" was not how Lily had wanted to start her day.
"Nothing happened! We stayed behind, practicing, we got talking and-"
"You didn't. Please tell me you didn't do anything to her. I love Miku and have a good grasp on how to reign in her anger, but that would be way out of my control." Luka was sounding genuinely worried.
"We got talking and we fell asleep. Nobody even took off any clothes! No touching, not even any romantic moments or traces of trying to create one. The last thing she said was that she prefers scrambled eggs over sunny side up. Not exactly a declaration of love."
"Neru called Miku this morning, saying Haku didn't come up. Miku called Gumi and learned you didn't come home either. She's been trying to get a hold of you- hold on, I'm talking to her- No, you can't just- Miku, stop-" The connection broke off.
Back in the present, Lily decided to wake Haku up for starters. Crouching in front of the couch, she slowly shook the girl by her shoulder. "Haku. It's morning. Wake up."
Turning over, more than half asleep, Haku only opened one eye, a very blurry image of a blonde being in front of her. "Neru...?" But that wasn't Neru's voice. Blinking a few times, yawning and finally opening the other eyes, Haku realized she was looking at Lily. "Lily?... how...?" Looking quite timid, Haku suddenly rose up, backing up to the other end of the couch, shocked when she realized where she was. "H-How did I... get here?"
"You fell asleep on the couch when we were talking. So did I, by the way. Nothing happened." Lily needed to make that absolutely sure. "We only slept next to each other, fully clothed. No touching." Lily thought she saw a spark of disappointment in her eyes when she said the last word. "Miku and Neru have been going crazy. She has school today so I don't think she'll show up, but could you call her and home to tell them everything is fine? Before they lynch me."
"I... don't have a cellphone..." Haku was still coping with the situation, trying to get a decent grip on how exactly she had just fallen asleep. Practicing so much had really worn her out but to fall asleep... was she really feeling that comfortable with just Lily present?
Handing Haku her own cellphone, Lily used speed dial three, one being Gumi and two being Luka, and it began ringing.
Taking the phone, Haku held it to her ear, looking a bit meek and awkward, using the cellphone of someone else. With a clicking noise, Miku picked up. "Where are you? Where is Haku?" Her voice was very much vibrating with impending doom.
"Miku..." Responding, the tension on the other end seemingly evaporated. "I only... fell asleep... on the couch in the... practice room. I'm fine..." Waiting a few seconds for an answer, Haku furiously blushed "No, I have... all my things." Raising her voice a little, she blushed even more. "Lily is not like that!" A clear cut answer with no hesitation, Haku was defending the blonde.
Listening to Miku for a little longer, Haku nodded twice. "Okay...You'll call Neru? Okay... Bye." Miku hung up. Haku was not looking forward to getting home and explaining things to Neru as well. Her half-sister was extremely protective of her, much more than Miku. If she told her she had spend the night with another girl, even if absolutely nothing happened and it was just an accident, Neru would make a big fuss.
Sighing heavily after hanging up, Haku looked at a distraught Lily. "Is either of them gonna lynch me?"
"Miku wouldn't do that..." Handing the cellphone back, Haku felt a bit unwell. They did change back into their normal clothes eventually but they were all sweaty now. And the only change of clothes at hand were those they had bought in the Hagane shop. "I'll... go change." She was still horribly embarrassed wearing those, but not so much that she would keep her smelling clothes on until she got home.
"I'll change out here. Don't worry, I won't peek." Lily tried to get back into a good mood. She didn't want Haku to be the only one wearing her outfit. It would bolster her confidence a little and make it less embarrassing if they were both dressed like that. "Want to get breakfast afterward?" She didn't have too much money on her, but it would be enough to get something to eat at a family restaurant or something similar.
Five minutes later, a very uneasy Haku was coming out from behind the separating wall, wearing her stage outfit. It was just about eight in the morning now. "It looks weird... doesn't it...?" She still lacked the confidence to calmly walk around in it.
"You look great. Tons of women wish to look as good in this as you do." Lily was wearing her own outfit and running her fingers through her hair. There were a lot of silver hairs mixed in. Not too surprised since they had slept back to back. "There is a family restaurant not too far from the Hagane shop. You okay with going there? There won't be many people this time of the day." Exposing Haku to the general public was a necessary step for her to gain some confidence. But she needed to take it slow. A full house would surely crush her.
"You really... don't think it looks.. weird?"
"We're in Tokyo. Akihabara isn't that far. Most people will just think we're doing cosplay. And you look great in this, just believe me." Grinning, Lily exhaled slowly. She was still trying to get used to seeing Haku in this. Seeing it right after waking up could easily replace coffee for her.
"Thanks." Smiling softly, Haku waited for Lily to take lead and head out. Locking the room before going up, Lily had trouble resisting the urge to look back, checking if Haku's breasts would bounce when she went up stairs. But she managed to keep her curiosity in check for once. Out on the street, much to Lily's pleasure, a lone cosplayer walked by on the other side of the street, dressed up as a protagonist from a JUMP comic.
"Told you." Smirking, Lily took Haku's hand, pulling her along for a few meters before letting go, sticking very close to her. Seeing herself and Haku in the window of a clothing shop, she wondered what other people thought of them. Would they think they were a couple if she got Haku to cling to her arm?
Shaking off her thoughts, it was still too early, both figuratively and metaphorically, to be romantically interested. Physical attraction to the beautiful woman was something else entirely, though. "Was this the first time you slept somewhere not at home?"
"In.. a long time, yes." Haku noticed that really very few people were looking at her or Lily, despite their getup. The streets were packed with people still getting to work and still, she didn't feel too uncomfortable with Lily by her side. The girl was really helping her a lot, but she couldn't shake off the feeling that she was horribly betraying Neru by being a bit smitten with Lily.
Their hands swinging back and forth a little, Haku felt the desire to just take Lily's hand for now. She was meek and timid, depressed and a bit too inclined to drink, but she wasn't stupid. She knew exactly what she was doing, what Lily was doing and that she was developing feelings for the blonde.
Neru was always looking out for her but because of how protective she was, she never let Haku push anything even a little. She had gotten a lot better around Neru herself but there was practically nothing different when other people came into play. Lily was helping her with that, a lot. And she was really attractive. Neru wasn't ugly by any stretch of the imagination, but Lily might just be a bit prettier. Thinking that, Haku noticed that she had been staring at Lily for a while now and quickly averted her eyes, blushing. "Do you... sleep out often?" Haku wondered if a girl like Lily got around, in many ways.
"I used to sleep over at friends all the time but I never got into any relationships that went all the way." Paraphrasing her way around I never had a lover, Lily didn't want to make Haku feel uncomfortable. She had slept with a few girls on occasion, but it was never more than a fling. The longest relationship she had ever had lasted three weeks and ended at the making out stage.
Lily quickly focused on something else before starting to imagine what it would be like to make out with Haku. Her pretty large breasts would- "Look, that's the place. What do you usually eat for breakfast, by the way?"
"Normal things. Rice, eggs, maybe toast." Occasionally, Haku could speak very clearly around Lily, for example, when the answer was something she absolutely didn't have to think about. Passing the street, Haku followed Neru into a nearly empty family restaurant.
Lily decided to not sit near the window so Haku wouldn't worry about people gaping at her. She tried to be as considerate as possible when dealing with the silver haired woman while still pushing her along. If she was always holed up at home, she would never get better. The place looked just like any other family restaurant. A few potted plants here and there, clean seats and tables, a small bell to call the waiter on the table and most of the sets back to back with another table. Parquet floor and the register in front, it was very much a standard shop.
Both of them looking through the card, Lily yawned and called the waiter. "Do you want coffee too?" She would need to borrow some money from Luka after this.
Thinking about it for a moment, Haku nodded, if only because she wanted to drink coffee with Lily, not because she really wanted the black drink. Since she always stayed at home, she could usually just nap after breakfast, too.
Giving the waitress their order, Lily yawned once more, looking a bit tired. She had slept well, which was a big surprise to her, but she was feeling a bit out of it. When had they fallen asleep? When she decided to take a break before going home, it had only been nine. At that hour, she would have walked Haku home, too.
"If I could, I'd start all of my days with looking at you." Lily needed a handful of seconds to realize why Haku blushed so heavily after hearing it. Blushing a little herself, she smiled. "That came out a lot more direct than I thought it would."
"You like... being with me?" Haku was a little confused on that. Neru loved her and that was why she spend a lot of time with her half-sister. But what reason did Lily have?
"Well, for one thing you're lovely to look at. You don't talk too much either and then... well. I like hanging out with Gumi, Miku and Luka and you're just as fun to be around as they are." She wasn't exaggerating. To her, Haku was a source of fun. Seeing her cute reactions and seeing her try despite being really shy was very enjoyable, in various ways.
Haku looked away, trying to hide her face. She was as fun to be around as Miku and Luka? Haku knew that Lily didn't lie to her, but even so, she was having trouble believing it. "Re...Really?" Putting her fingers together, she got a little nervous. She didn't expect Lily to like her that much.
"Everyone has their own strengths. Miku by herself holds back too much and Luka by herself can be really overwhelming. They balance each other out. Gumi is kind and can be pretty funny. You're not the type to deliver comedy acts or tell jokes but you're always attentive and you don't skip out on answering when someone asks you." Lily watched the waitress come with their coffee.
"I'll take the breakfast set A." Looking to Haku, she was shying away from the waitress. Lily wished she could have touched her hand at the time, giving her a little confidence.
Noticing the look in Lily's eyes, one that wasn't pity or annoyance but caring, Haku gathered her courage. "I'll.. take the same."
"It'll be a few minutes." Excusing herself, the waitress left.
Lily was proud of Haku for speaking up on her own. "We need to get you a cellphone, though." Getting her coffee, it was still so hot that she couldn't drink it right away. Blowing on it a little, her heart skipped a couple beats before suddenly racing when she saw Haku hold the cup with both hands, her bangs slightly hanging in her face, blowing on the coffee. She couldn't say what about that scene made her heart race but Haku definitely had an effect on her.
"Lily?" Noticing her look, Haku checked her clothes if she had splashed coffee on them. "Uh... Lily... you're staring..."
Snapping out of it, Lily sat back and took a deep breath. "Sorry. I got caught up in watching you for a moment." Pausing for a brief moment, Lily sighed. "Wonderful, that did sound exactly as creepy as what I did was."
"Its not... creepy. I... its not that... uh..." She couldn't find the right words. Her voice turned to a whisper. "I... don't mind."
"If we get you a cellphone, I'll get a picture of you to show when you call me." Grinning, Lily had to change the topic before the mood turned into something she didn't have the nerve to deal with it. She did have pictures of Miku, looking annoyed, Luka, sticking her tongue out, and Gumi, eyes closed and smiling, for when they called. She would have asked Haku if she wanted to go and shop for one later, but she needed to defuse the situation first and get her home after breakfast.
Drinking their coffee in silence for a minute, Lily started up another topic. "You get along fine with your cousin, Neru, right? What is she like? I only saw her a bit pissed when we were there during the rainstorm."
"Neru is... protective of me. She worries a lot." Haku hated lying to Lily. She was so honest and she couldn't be, not about Neru. "Her temper... can be a bit bad. But she really... cares about family."
"That explains why she was worried about you. Or why she seems to dislike Luka so much. After all, Luka is talking one of her precious cousins away from her home." Lily wondered if she would have to deal with similar treatment, or even worse, if she would date Haku.
Date Haku. That was just a fantasy for now. She knew a fair bit about the girl at this point but by far not enough to justify asking her out on a real date. Until now, she had never dated a woman that was older than her, either. And that was really it. Haku was a woman, not just a girl. She couldn't just take her out to a dance, get close, take her home and sleep with her. If she was going to make a move on her, she wanted to know about her first. Because she was too taken in by her to take the risk of messing things up by acting too quickly.
"What does she do for a living?" Knowing that Haku was essentially a NEET, she had always avoided the topic of what she was doing.
"She writes... freelance." It was decent money but without Miku giving in some, things had always been a bit hard. "I wish... I could help... and work." Haku looked rather depressed all of a sudden. But with her condition and personality, not only was there nothing she was really good at, but since she was so bad with people, getting hired would be a nightmare.
"You're working." Lily had a great idea. "The band will, hopefully, bring in money eventually. Miku, Luka and Gumi make a lot on their own, so they won't mind if we split it half and half between us. You're practicing really hard and you play well." Smiling briefly, Lily took a sip from her coffee before continuing. "Not to mention, out of us five, you're the prettiest, so people might show up just for that, too."
Haku spaced out for a moment. "You'll.. pay me?" She didn't really think about that before. She had agreed because Miku needed her and because it was a chance to get out more.
"What are you saying? You're putting it as many hours as me. I'd feel horrible if I didn't split the money with you." That, and she wanted to ensure that Haku stopped feeling bad about not working. If she made money to support her household, it would help her a lot, she was sure of it.
About to cry out of pure happiness, Haku didn't want to cause a scene. If she started crying in public, Lily would look like the villain, and she didn't want that more than anything right now. Holding it back to the best of her ability, she didn't even notice that Lily had gotten up until she felt the blonde's hand on her head, standing next to her. "You're so adorable, it should be illegal."
Shedding a single tear before slightly lowering her head, Haku felt truly happy at that very moment. "I'm happy I... met you. You're so nice to me..."
"Don't make it sound like we're going our separate ways." Grinning, she patted her head a little more. "I need you." She didn't specify in the band for good reason. She wanted Haku to be part of her personal life, too, not just when they were at practice.
Her voice too faint to understand, Haku spoke very quickly and stuttered even more quickly to herself while Lily returned to her seat, spotting their waitress bringing their food. "Say Haku, have you ever cooked?"
Looking a tad surprised, the red eyed woman wondered how Lily had suddenly gotten that idea. "I can cook.. I just haven't in a while..."
"I wonder if I'll ever have the chance to eat something you made." Getting their food, Lily looked at western breakfast. A handful pieces of toast, marmalade, margarine, a bit of cheese, an egg and juice. It was a cheap set but that would be plenty for just breakfast.
Starting to eat, Lily noticed by chance that Haku was struggling with her egg. "Cut off the top with your knife." Pointing at her own egg, Lily put just margarine on her first toast.
Eating in relatively silence, Lily was quite thankful for that. She loved to talk over drinks but not over a meal. Finished after twenty minutes, Lily paid and escorted Haku out. "Let's get you home before both Miku and Neru decide to come after me." Laughing, Lily was quite happy with how things turned out.
~~~ Hear my Song! ~~~
It was a hard decision to leave them behind. But in the end, they were still strangers she had taken in. She had no obligation to care for them forever. Having packed her most important things, leaving behind everything she didn't need and just bit of money so the two could go on for a few days on their own, Yukari stood in front of the apartment.
She wasn't looking back. Staying and dealing with Ia was a worst case scenario. The girl was pathologically obsessed with her and it was only a matter of time until something really terrible happened. It was too much of a bother to try and deal with her. If push had come to shove, she might have been able to get into a relationship with her, but not without Ia going through some serious therapy first.
Taking one step forward, Yukari immediately took two back. "Ia?!" Her sister had just come around the corner, smiling.
"Yukari... I knew you were going to try and run. But... but..." Twitching, she really needed every ounce of her self-control to not jump at her. "You said I need to make you like me. So... I'll forgive you for trying to run away." Her smile was extremely forced and awkward. It would be obvious to anyone that what she was saying wasn't what she wanted to say, or do.
Yukari was perplexed by this. Taking another step back, Ia took one forward. Trying to outrun her was just going to make her mad and even if she could do it without her luggage, she wasn't going to make it on the street with nothing at all. She was trapped.
"I don't think you can handle acting like a normal person around me, Ia." If running was a no-go, she would try to make her give up.
Biting the nail on her thumb, Ia got a little closer to her sister. "You shouldn't run away from everything that's unpleasant."
It stung. Yukari's eyes went wide in rage, her cheeks suddenly feeling like they were on fire, her throat burning. How dare she says that to her! "What do you know about unpleasant things?! You're just doing whatever you want!"
Getting even closer and grabbing her sister's arm, Ia hissed. "I know everything. I was watching you all the time. I saw how much you suffered! I love you but I'm not stupid!"
"Then why did you kidnap me? Couldn't you see how that's a bad idea?" Trying to wrestle herself free, Ia was surprisingly strong.
"It's been so long since I saw you. Maybe I... maybe I went a little overboard." It was hard to admit but after having a night to sleep it over, Ia had realized that while she loved Yukari, she wouldn't be happy if Yukari didn't love her back. And there were some things she could only get that way.
"A little? You kidnapped and raped me!" Finally pulling loose, Yukari took a step back. She just couldn't figure out what was going on inside her sister's head.
"Lots overboard then! Do you know how I've longed to see you? Talk to you, touch you, hear you, spend time with you? I'm-"
"Insane!" Yukari finished that sentence for her. "Honestly, I was disgusted when you forced yourself on me. How am I supposed to like you, in any way, if I'm constantly being watched by you?"
"Running away despite saying you would give me a chance, is that your idea of dealing with things?" Ia only wanted to be by her side. Why couldn't she be happy about that?
"You're a nuisance. Do you think I wanted to make a run for it? I was living in peace until you showed up!"
"Just do what you said you would and you can live in peace. With me." She wouldn't give up on Yukari, not now, not ever. She'd do whatever she had to.
"After yesterday I don't want to believe you."
"At least give me a chance!" If she wouldn't do at least that much, Ia would resort to her original plan. It was still better than losing Yukari completely.
She didn't want to. But looking at the alternatives depressed her. Running for it, possibly forever, was a horrible way to live. It would be even more stressful than living with Ia. And she didn't even want to consider alternatives like killing her. She might hate trouble but she would never kill her sister. Making her give up didn't seem like it would ever work. And curing her wasn't exactly something that she could do without practically being right next to her all the time anyway.
Putting down her backpack, Yukari admitted defeat. Not resisting at this point was probably going to be the least annoying path to take. She didn't like it. She would continue to try and find a way to get out of it. But for now, she was beaten. "Fine. One chance and one only." If Ia didn't get herself under control, even prison would be a better choice. "And you can start by not stalking me home."
"I will know when you try to run, Yukari." Ia was too smart to waltz into a trap like that. "Please keep your word."
Walking back to her apartment, Yukari didn't know how she was going to get out of this. Going to the police was useless. She was her sister and she was homeless. They would only laugh at her, even if she claimed abduction and rape. Asking someone on the street to intimidate Ia out of following her wouldn't work either. Ia was a well known idol, if she went to the police, things would be very bad.
Their vastly different living circumstances put Yukari in a corner from which there was apparently no escape. The one and only hope she could hold onto was that Ia would eventually get a grip. But that was like hoping to find the winning ticket for the lottery on the street.
At least she didn't believe in silly things like this being her punishment for running away from home. It was nothing of the sort. Ia was simply crazy, and not in a good way. It could have been worse yet, but Yukari didn't even want to think about that.
Back in Ia's hotel, Seeu was sitting in the bathtub early in the morning, her eyes empty, arms around her legs, she had lived through the worst night of her life. Late that evening, Ia had come back, an expression on her face that scared Seeu. Trying to leave the room and escape, she was caught by the cold-hearted blonde and dragged to the bed.
The next six hours of her life were a haze of going from one unwanted orgasm to another, forced to pleasure Ia and let her have her way. When the taller of the two finally had enough, turned over and went to sleep, naked, Seeu couldn't even walk anymore, her legs so weak that she couldn't stand. Her was not a drop of strength left in her.
Looking at a flower vase next to the bed, Seeu wanted to take it and smash Ia's head in, but she couldn't. Not only because she didn't have the strength to lift the object but also because she didn't have it in her to kill someone. Trying to cry, trying to get it all out, she couldn't even get herself to do that. Instead, she just laid there, depressed and disgusted, feeling empty inside.
It only took a few minutes before Ia rolled over and grabbed her, held her. And it made everything worse. The comfort of being hugged like that was such a stark contrast to how the girl usually treated her that she only realized then how cruelly she was being treated. And still she couldn't cry. There was not a shred of respect or care in Ia for her.
And the worst of it all? She couldn't help but relish the gentle embrace, seek the one moment when she was being treated like a human being, like someone Ia cared about. She still hated her. And she hated herself for wanting the embrace. She was selling her dignity and pride for some cheap comfort.
Waking up in the morning, she was alone. Still naked and feeling exhausted from six hours of sex, she managed to get herself into the bath. She didn't have the energy to be mad anymore. It was slowly becoming part of her life. The sexual abuse. The endless bullying. The days when she didn't have to deal with it seemed already far away. And it hadn't even been a month.
To Ia, Seeu was nothing but an object she could use to satisfy various urges. Getting back to her room, there was no sign of Seeu. The bed was smelling so strongly of sex and their love juices that Ia was amused when she thought what the room service would think. Two girls sleeping in the same bed and then it smells like this? No doubt they would assume she and Seeu were a couple.
She had always liked bullying her to some degree but lately it had become much more fun. Using Seeu for sex wasn't so bad. It was more fun than masturbating, and if she managed to imagine she was actually sleeping with Yukari and not that Korean bitch, it was even better.
As things were right now, she wouldn't even mind keeping her around as a toy, even if she got together with Yukari. Of course she wouldn't sleep with her anymore, but bullying her was still fun. The funniest part yet was that the girl didn't realize that she was only doing it because she had never learned to stand up for herself when there was someone stronger than her. Being used to having people dance to her whistle, Seeu simply broke down on the inside when that didn't work. Either she would eventually figure it out, or she would continue like this until Ia discarded her.
Opening the bathroom door, she spotted the Korean girl. It was chilly outside this early in the morning so a hot bath was just the right thing. Not saying anything and simply stripping, Ia walked naked over to the tub. Seeu was about to get out, seeing that Ia had stripped, but was pushed back in by the taller girl. "You're not going anywhere." Sitting down behind her, Yukari tightly wrapped her arms around Seeu's waist, keeping her close. She was nothing more but a fondling pillow for Ia.
She didn't say anything. Opening her mouth when Ia was close was just an invitation for her to crank the bullying up to eleven. Feelings Ia's hands move all over her body, most of the disgust from last night came back. The first time, she had puked. The new few times, she had cried, yelled and locked herself in her room. After that, she just kept quiet, as nothing she did ever did her any good.
"It looks like you finally learned how to keep quiet." Ia grinned in a devilish manner. Twisting Seeu's nipples a little, she got the girl to wince. "Your voice is the only decent thing about you. Let me hear it." Crudely groping her small breasts, Ia forced the girl to become horny, excited, starting to pant. "That's better. Now kiss me."
Forcing Seeu to turn, she almost laughed out loud when she saw the glassy look in her eyes. Her lips slightly parted, her tongue glistening wet, Seeu's face was giving quite the lewd appearance. Starting a crude, sloppy kiss, Seeu behaved no different than a robot, who was doing exactly as her master had told her.
Her spunk, sass and bitchy behavior were all things of the past when she was around Ia. The girl turned her into a spineless, depressed wreck. A rush of disgust went through her when Ia slid two fingers between her legs. Her body was starting to become attuned to Ia's touch. Knowing what came next, she automatically moved her hand between Ia's legs, returning the favor.
Her mind was numb to the sensations of having sex with Ia by now. Her body reacted but in her head, it was just torture. If she kept quiet and obediently did what Ia wanted from her, then things usually didn't get out of hand and she would be free soon after. The last time she had resisted, Ia had tried out candle wax bondage play on her. It was so painful that she had wet herself in the end.
"I liked you more when you were resisting." Taking her fingers out of Seeu and sticking them in her mouth next, forcing her to lick them, Ia was a little bored with how obediently she behaved. It wasn't fun if she just went along with it.
Just following the same procedure as usual, Ia came long before Seeu, who was then left sexually frustrated and even more depressed and disgusted with herself. Hoping for Ia to hug her after she obediently did what she was told to was starting to become an unwanted impulse she felt every time they had sex.
But it never came. It only intensified the bad feelings she felt afterward to begin with. Only when Ia was asleep would she be nice to her, cuddle up and hold her. Looking at the naked back of Ia, who was just walking away, Seeu reached out, desperate for some genuinely loving human contact.
~~~ Hear my Song! ~~~
Visiting Gumi at work, Lily had left Haku with Neru, who had made a massive fuss over Haku staying out without telling her. It took only seconds for the silver haired woman to revert all the way back to the timid, shy and meek wreck she had been that stormy day. Lily didn't need to clairvoyant to see that Haku was feeling ashamed of Lily seeing her like that and quickly retreated into her room.
She had nothing to say to Neru that wouldn't result in a fight, so Lily left. The next time she got paid, she'd get Haku a cellphone so she could at least call her to cheer her up. She didn't doubt that Neru cared about her a lot but she was going about it the wrong way. Keeping her sheltered from the world wasn't going to help her any. She was over twenty-five, unemployed, and only had a failed career to show. Hopefully she could fix the last two things.
But Lily was worried about herself as well. Was it a good idea to get this caught up with Haku and her life? If things didn't work out, it would be ugly, for everyone involved. She didn't want her friendship with Miku and, by extension, Luka to go Kaboom because she expected too much from Haku.
Telling Gumi that, Lily was given quite the piece of her mind. "You should probably talk to Luka about this, not me." Gumi had two reasons to not want to talk about Haku with Lily. One, Lily wasn't romantically interested in only Haku. What she had said to her on the way to the convenience store during the rainstorm was still stuck in her head. Two, she was annoyed that Lily would actually be thoughtless enough to ignore reason one.
"I figured you would have a better idea since I would date you too if you wanted me to." The situation with Haku was a little different but Gumi was essentially not quite in the same boat but on the same river. Thinking about the analogy, Lily wasn't sure that quite made sense in hindsight,
"My break is over. I'll see you later, Lily." Slightly annoyed, Gumi had just learned that sometimes being lied to would be preferable. Lily was a great girl, but not without her faults. She had just witnessed one of those faults.
Left behind in the break room, Lily got something from the vending machine. It wasn't until a few minutes later that she realized how rude she must have come across. "I'll apologize later." She really had just wanted an opinion on whether she should wait for Haku to take the first step or if she should ask her out.
Wandering around for a bit, she eventually came across Luka next to the stairs that led to the roof. By the looks of it, the songstress was slacking off. "Taking a break?"
"Oh hey, Lily. Sort of. Miku is driving me nuts today." Luka finished her coke and sighed. "She's going on and on about you and Haku. I told her to trust you but she's such a worrywart."
"I didn't think this would blow up to be such a big deal." She didn't feel sorry since it was really helping Haku, but she didn't like the idea of Miku and Luka's relationship suffering because of it.
"She'll stop eventually. So, whats the state of things?"
"Horrible." Lily looked at the ceiling. "I constantly have to remind myself that its not okay to go heels over head for her until I at least know her better."
"You got hit really hard." Luka grinned wide. "She does look really good. I can't say much about her personality though, she's somehow really afraid of me."
"Beneath all that shyness, she's nice, considerate and unspeakably cute. But she really has to fight to get out of her shell. I had breakfast with her at a family restaurant this morning and she was really pressed just to order herself. I didn't think it would be quite that bad."
"But you want to date her, right?"
"Want to, yes. I'm just worried if I can. I mean, I know how to act around her and its really not that unusual for me, but I'm not sure Haku can handle a relationship to begin with." Lily leaned against the wall, standing next to Luka. "Even if I can't date her, I want to help her though."
"You would never guess and you didn't hear this from me but Miku is super glad that you're around and helping Haku get her life in order. She won't admit it, though but I can sense it."
Laughing for a few seconds, Lily shook her head. "I never heard anything. But you know, I wish I had a relationship like you do. I'm a bit jealous."
"We sometimes argue or fight over petty stuff, too. We just make up really quick afterward. I can't imagine Haku actually fighting with someone though."
"Sometimes I just want to walk up to her, hug her and tell her everything is fine. Maybe followed by a kiss." Lily hadn't known that love could be so complicated. "I really picked the most complicated one to fall for, didn't I? Not that I regret it in the least."
"Gumi and Haku. Star that is in love with her sister who lives overseas who is also a star and a girl that's a traumatized wreck and also several years older than you. You should go and write your own theater pieces." Luka was just joking and patted Lily on the shoulder. "They're both great girls. Unlike Gumi, Haku is romantically preoccupied though, so it makes sense that you're going for her." That, and she probably needs the romance to get her life in order. But Luka wasn't gonna say that. Lily probably knew.
"Is Miku still at school?" Lily didn't exactly feel the need to run into her, not until later that day when they got together for practice.
"She said a test in English was coming up and wanted my help. So we'll have to see if we can make it to practice today. Worst case scenario, you and your two crushes can practice alone."
"If you're trying to set us up so we talk things over I really don't appreciate that, Luka. Gumi knows exactly where she stands and Haku... well, fine, I don't know if Haku does." Rolling eyes, Lily noticed the ugly smirk on Luka's face. "Stop teasing me."
"Sorry, force of habit. I'm a bit short on playing with Miku lately because of school so I sorta just went for it." Stepping away from the wall, Luka stretched. "I guess I slacked off enough. Time to get back before everyone explodes at me."
"See you later at practice? I'm gonna go home and do some house chores. I'm pretty much on cleaning duty when Gumi is recording." She liked living with Gumi. Even though the girl supplied basically all the rent on her own, she didn't work Lily like a slave. They took turns cooking and cleaning, except when Gumi was working full days.
"Maybe. Gotta see what Miku says." Leaving, Luka yawned briefly and returned to her recording room. "Sorry, took a bit longer than I thought." The entire room was just thinking one thing. How does getting a drink take longer than one thinks?
Starting up again, Luka wondered how things would play out between those three. The way she saw it, Gumi would need to make a move before Lily was completely taken by Haku because it was too late afterward. She wasn't in the recording room for long. A staff member called her out because her cellphone was ringing, Love is War playing as the ringtone.
"Miku?" Hearing loud giggling and squeeling on the other end, Luka rolled eyes. If it was what she thought it was, she'd hang up. "Who's there?" She was given half a dozen names within seconds, but she didn't really care about any of them. "That cellphone belongs to Miku. Give it back." Annoyed, Luka hang up. That was the second time that they had hijacked her cellphone and used it to call her at work. Miku needed a second cellphone. One that she kept a secret so she could delete her number from the first one.
On the other end of the line, Miku snatched the cellphone away from a bunch of classmates, who were all overly excited to hear the famous Luka Megurine on the phone. "Stop acting like ten year old children." She couldn't believe them.
"Eh, whats the problem with just calling her? Don't be so stingy and hog her all to yourself." One of the girls complained. If only she knew how I'm hogging her, Miku thought to herself.
"Every time you call her from my cellphone, she has to drop work. Do you know what her hourly wage is?" She didn't have one, but Miku didn't care. "I'm assuming you want to hire her just to talk to you next time?"
"Wow, jealous much? We just talked to her for a few seconds."
"For which she had to come out of recording and start the song all over again. We're looking at five to fifteen minutes of wasted time. The next time you snatch my cellphone I'm going to report you to the principal." Miku was plenty threatening on her own. She didn't need to use Luka's fame to do so.
"Tsk. Acting all big just because she got lucky and gets to stand next to Luka." She wasn't making many friends nowadays but those that had been her friends from before knew better than to abuse how close to Luka she was.
She had other problems to worry about than to deal with those girls. An English test was coming up and she wasn't nearly prepared enough. Not only that but she was delaying work too. Regardless of whether she was prepared or not, she would have to skip school and record Akatsuki Arrival the next day, no way around it.
And then there was the issue with Haku and Lily. Neru had called her after Haku had come home but she was still agitated. It took most of her break to calm her down. She knew Lily was being good to her but when stuff like this happened, she felt that Neru's anger was justified. It was one thing to stay out unannounced for Lily, another entirely for Haku.
It was difficult to trust Lily. Not because she stayed out one night by accident, but because, similar to Neru, she was very protective of Haku. But seeing her smile and open up really meant a lot to Miku. If she needed any reason to say she was happy to have joined the band, then it was that Haku met Lily.
Class was starting again and Miku switched textbooks. She hoped the recording tomorrow would go over quick. She didn't want to fail the test. It drop her a grade but she still didn't like the idea of her school life suffering under her job. Then again, if she absolutely had to, she would rather drop out of school than give up her job.
The love letters and notes had thankfully stopped but there were lots of rumors of Magnet being more than just a song due to how often Luka came to pick her up at school. They obviously had no proof and the net had always been full of rumors so it didn't bother Miku that much.
She would have to skip band practice that day and get Luka to tutor her. She wasn't looking forward to that. Her lover was the type that would make fun of her for this for weeks. But it was a hard and fast fact that Luka's English was better than hers.
The next three hours stretched themselves as thin as paper but eventually, she was released. Packing her things, she caught a lot of nasty talking behind her back. The very same girls that had been sucking up to her lately. She wasn't surprised. Stopping next to them, Miku gave them a look from the side, not saying anything and only smirking for a second before she left.
Taking the same exit as always, Miku found Luka already waiting for her, being pestered by a bunch of fans. Seeing Miku, Luka switched to CD player, ramped the volume all the way up and pressed start. The very same song, Alsatia by Galneryus, promptly boomed through the area, shooing the fans away, who were covering their ears in pain.
Miku was already used to this. Walking past the fleeing students, some of them looking at her with slight hostility, Miku got around the car and into the passenger seat. The music was turned down quickly and Luka showed her a smile. "I think I'm going to park down the street from now on. I don't want to deal with fans during my private time."
"I have to deal with them even in class. So what did you tell Lily?" Looking at Luka's surprised expression, Miku sighed. "I know you better than anyone else, Luka. There is no way you haven't talked to her after what went down this morning."
"Guilty as charged, I suppose. She met me at work while I was taking a break."
"You mean when you were slacking off."
"Stop reading my mind, jeez." Laughing, Luka took a wrong turn and cursed. "She is heels over head in love with Haku even though she's blocking herself from really accepting it. She wants to know her better than she does now before she is willing to accept she's in love."
"Haku comes with a lot of difficult to deal with baggage so I can understand that. I hope things go well for those two. It would make me really happy to see someone love Haku and care for her in a relationship."
Luka knew better than to make obvious care for jokes at this point. Making fun of Haku was a big taboo she didn't break. The more she heard about her from Miku and Lily, the less she wanted to make fun of her to begin with. Maybe one day she would have enough confidence in herself to deal with a bit of teasing.
"Home? Or are we going to practice? I told Lily we might not show up."
"I need to study. I'll give Lily a call that we're not coming." Taking out her cellphone, Miku speed dialed Lily's cell. But the call never got through. With a horrifying crunching sound, the car was suddenly violently flung around, spinning and finally crashed back first into the wall of a house. The airbags popped at the moment of the impact but Luka was still completely disorientated. Her ears were ringing, and so was her head, and her whole body felt like it was broken. But that wasn't her primary concern. Forcing herself back, leaned against the seat, Luka undid her seat belt and checked on her partner. "Miku? Hey... Miku?!" A very thin trickle of blood was running from the green haired girl's temple.
Luka felt fear like she had never felt before. Panic rose up and completely took hold inside. Adrenaline swept through her veins with such force that she crushed the airbag and got out of her car. The vehicle was completely totaled in the back. A dozen meters away was the car that had rammed them, a small van, the front smashed in, the window broken. But she didn't care about that at all. Hurrying to the other side of the car, Luka took out her cell and quickly dialed for an ambulance. Giving her name, where they were and what had happened, Luka talked so fast that the voice on the other side needed her to repeat everything. Shouting into the cell, Luka said everything a second time.
Her own pain completely drowned out by adrenaline, Luka undid Miku's seat belt and felt her head. She couldn't find any large wound or obvious injuries but she was unconscious. She couldn't tell if it was save to move her. "Miku... please be okay. Please, please be okay." Her entire body was shaking. Horror scenarios went through her head, like Miku being paralyzed or losing her ability to sing, or worse.
It was all a blur what happened next. A tall woman with black hair and hetereochromia asked her to step aside and checked on Miku before moving her out of the car and putting her on the ground. "She's fine. It looks bad but at worst she has a mild concussion and a scratch that is gonna be bleeding for a bit."
Sitting down next to Miku, Luka was still worried sick. She had never before been in a car accident. She wasn't always driving safely, but she was good at driving so she never was in any danger. With blazing anger lighting up inside of her, the songstress went up and looked for the perpetrator.
And she found him. A large man, at least a head taller than Luka and made like a bear, was standing in front of his own car. "You the one in the convertible? Your insurance is gonna cover this, right?" His world turned black right after saying that. Luka's fist hit his face so hard that she nearly fracture the bones in her right hand. Going on his knees, the man cursed and spat blood. "The fuck are you doing?"
"People are injured and all you care about is your damn money?!" Kicking him so hard that he fell to the ground, Luka was about to completely lose it when the same woman from before held her back. Much taller than the man even, she had no trouble restraining Luka. "Let me go! I'm gonna kill that bastard! He could have killed Miku!"
Dragging her away, the woman brought her back to the girl on the ground, next to the broken car. "Stay with her. She's important to you, right? Have you called an ambulance yet?"
Switching back to being worried sick, the adrenaline was slowly dissipating, her own body starting to hurt like hell. Sitting there, holding Miku's hand, Luka suddenly felt incredibly sick. Not five seconds later, she threw up on the asphalt, a few meters away from Miku.
"I'm Ruko. I'm an acquaintance of Miku. You're Luka Megurine, right?" Trying to get her from acting up more than she had already done, Ruko's extensive first aid training came in handy. At one time she had worked to become a paramedic but she wasn't good at handling the really bad cases.
Nodding, Luka returned to Miku's side. The bleeding had already stopped so it really wasn't as bad as Luka had thought. But seeing Miku bleed had really put the fear in her. Five minutes later, during which Ruko had to chase off the attacked man and hold Luka back from attacking him again, the ambulance came.
It turned out that Luka had a mild concussion and contusion in her left arm. Miku woke up on the way to the hospital where they could only find a minor concussion. Ironically, Luka was kept there for observation while Miku would be free to go home. She wasn't going to go anywhere though.
"You're still as pale as a ghost, Luka." Miku was really worried about her. Being in a car crash wasn't something one could just laugh off.
"I was never so afraid for something in my entire life, Miku. I saw you bleeding and I felt my world fall apart in front of my eyes."
Luka was kept in an observation room, occupying one of the many free beds. She would be released the next morning. A doctor had already asked them if they had any relatives to call and Miku had given Neru a call. Haku was already out and had gone to practice after Lily had picked her up.
"You're the one who is being kept here for the night. I just got a scratch. You can't even see it because its under my hair. They said it will sting when I shower but there is nothing to worry about. I'm fine. I'm more worried about you."
"I'm fine as long as you're okay." Having just said that, Miku touched her left arm and Luka winced a little. "Still fine!"
Taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly, Miku fought back a few tears. "When I woke up and was in an ambulance, do you know what the first thing was I thought?" Taking Luka's hand, Miku felt really sad. "That something happened to you. I guess we both care more about each other than about ourselves."
"Don't say that like we didn't know." Checking if someone was there, Luka briefly kissed Miku. "I'm just glad you're okay."
~~~ Hear my Song! ~~~
Sitting in the back of the practice room, Haku and Lily to one side, Gumi to the other, they were still digesting the news of Miku and Luka being in a car accident. "At least they're not hurt badly." Gumi tried to retain her positive outlook but that was easier said than done.
"Knowing Luka, she'll be joking about this next week." Lily tried to downplay what had happened. It wasn't that they got hurt what was shocking. It was the sudden realization that things could have gone a lot worse. That one or both of them could have died.
Haku was the quietest of the three, hiding her face behind her bangs. Ever since they had sat down and Lily got the call, she had held on to Lily's right hand. She didn't want to be left alone now and Lily was showing no intention of doing that.
Accidents happened and it was always shocking for those that were close to the victims. "Haku, want to go home with us? We won't be practicing today." Lily didn't want to stay here. After getting the news, she just wanted to go home. "Gumi, you're okay with that?"
Gumi nodded twice. She did like Haku, even though only a fellow band member. She was a ice, if very shy, girl and she didn't mind having some additional company right now. "We're all a bit gloomy right now but I'm sure we'll be back to normal the moment Luka shows up tomorrow, as... Luka as always."
"No adjective to fit her, is there?" Lily smiled briefly. Now that was more like Gumi. She was sort of like a backup Luka when things became too serious. "I know it's rough to go and have fun when friends got into an accident, but imagine the hell Luka is going to give us tomorrow if we're still looking like scrooge."
"I'd rather not." Gumi was slightly bothered by the mental image. "But the most I can settle for is watching a funny movie at home."
"Should be plenty. I hope Luka doesn't try and seduce Miku in the hospital." Lily wondered what the nurse would think to find two people with minor concussions going at it.
"You think she is staying with her? Didn't she have a test coming up?" Gumi almost instantly realized what she was saying. "Never mind, this are Luka and Miku we're talking about."
"Should we go?" Squeezing Haku's hand a little, Lily had paid attention to not letting Gumi notice what the red eyed woman was doing. She didn't want to create any stress for either of them right now.
Gumi got up first and took her cellphone out. It was five in the afternoon. Even if they went slowly, they would be home before six, rather early considering the last few days. "Want to get something to eat on our way back or order out?" Forcing herself to move out of her gloomy mood, Gumi wondered for a moment what she would do if she caught word of Sonika being in an accident.
Seeing Haku hold on to Lily, Gumi didn't blame her. Miku was a lot closer to Haku than Lily or Gumi, so she obviously took it harder and needed the additional comfort. In a way, Gumi was even grateful that Lily could provide said comfort. Because she wasn't that good at dealing with Haku.
"Let's just order something. I don't feel like sitting around in public." Lily noticed a quick nod from Haku, who thought the same. "Let's go."
~~~ Hear my Song! ~~~
Ia wasn't just totally crazy, she was also much, much smarter than Yukari gave her credit for. Keeping herself under control, she had shown up around noon, picked up Yukari and taken her on a date. Of course, the purple haired girl had not much say about whether she wanted to go at all. Ia did however let her decide where to go. Testing her control, she had taken her sister to the park and taken a very, very long walk with her.
And it had immensely backfired. Beside insisting on holding hands the entire time, Ia was acting surprisingly tame. It smelled like a horrible trap. After four hours of walking, Yukari was beat. She didn't have the stamina she had back when she was an idol. Sitting on a bench, Ia snuggled up to her sister, who was intensely surprised how human Ia seemed now. Nobody that saw them would've expected that one of them kidnapped and raped the other.
"I want to take you to dinner later. Do you have any formal clothes?" Ia was feeling incredible happiness from being this close to Yukari, who wasn't resisting, looking at her in disgust or making snark comments.
"Of course not. I live in an apartment that doesn't even have electricity." Yukari still felt slightly threatened. Ia was really behaving like a normal person, but how long could that possibly last? When was she going to succumb to her urges and jump her? The moment that happened, her chance was gone.
"I'll give you something from me. We'll just have to go back to my hotel later." Ia wondered if she should bother and tell Seeu to get the hell out of their room before she took Yukari there but that was probably not worth the trouble. Seeu wasn't worth worrying about. Their little act was all over TV anyway so Yukari wouldn't get the wrong idea. The thought of Yukari wearing her clothes was like first prize of the lottery. She would treasure them.
With the way Ia was behaving, Yukari couldn't find valid cause to complain. Being treated to good food in a restaurant was something any other girl from the street could only dream about. As much as she didn't like to admit it, there were some advantages to being with Ia, but only as long as she acted like a normal human being. "I'm not going to spend the night at your hotel, Ia."
"Of course not. This is only our first date." Her smile was a little forced but she managed. "I was thinking of going to see a movie with you tomorrow. Any preferences? I'll reserve our seats." She was hoping for a horror movie or a romance, both would set a great mood she could use to get even closer to Yukari.
It wasn't that she was suddenly acting normally. She was pretending to. Deep down, she wanted to do her right now. But if there was a way to make Yukari love her back, she would do it, no matter how hard it was. Because receiving Yukari's love was the very definition of paradise for her. It would instantly make her life complete.
She didn't have any preferences in movies. But knowing Ia, she was rooting for a romance flick that would give her an excuse to get all horny on her. She had kept herself amazingly under control so far but she didn't believe that would last much longer. "Anything except a romance is fine. I don't like their overly dramatic approaches." Her own life was very much plenty of drama right now.
"I'm so excited. To be able and see a movie while sitting next to my beloved Yukari." Smiling wide, she happily sighed. Looking at the purple haired ex-star, Ia got a little closer. "I can't...
And there it was. Yukari was ready to throw her off and make a run for it the moment their lips touched but instead, she felt a warm and wet touch on her cheek. Surprised, Yukari couldn't tell if Ia was playing her or not at this point.
"We should go. You can take a hot bath in my room, too." Having money and fame certainly came in handy when dealing with someone homeless.
"I'll take my bath alone." There couldn't possibly be enough warnings for Ia. Being assaulted in the bath would be very unpleasant. Being able to take a bath in the first place however was something she was actually looking forward to.
"Yukari, you don't need to say those things." Ia wanted to bathe with her. "I'll know when you're ready to share a bath." She was hoping that would be soon.
"I don't trust you yet. True, you're keeping yourself under control, for now, but I'm not going to let my guard down because of a few hours."
Yukari didn't say anything in response and instead just slowly got up before she changed the topic. "Come. It's gonna take a while to get back and I'm starting to be really hungry."
Reluctantly getting up, Yukari wondered how long this mind game was going to last. Whether she would succumb and let her guard down first or Ia screwed up. As things were right now, she didn't even have the faintest idea. But the more time she spend with Ia, the more she realized that she wasn't just plain crazy. There was a lot of meticulous thinking behind it. But she wasn't going to give up just yet. There had to be a way out of this.
Thinking that, she kept holding hands with Ia while slowly returning the way they had come, Ia starting to cling to her arm a little halfway down the path. She would win this game. No matter what she had to do or tolerate. She would win. Because she could take her frustration out on Seeu after all.
Smiling happily, two very different sisters walked through the park, both thinking about out-smarting the other one. One of them seeing the other to return her love, the other wanting the love to stop in the first place.
~~~ End of Concert XVII ~~~